DOI: 10.2478/fv-2020-0026 FOLIA VETERINARIA, 64, 3: 47—53, 2020 ECTOPARASITES CTENOCEPHALIDES (SIPHONAPTERA, PULICIDAE) IN THE COMPOSITION OF MIXED INFESTATIONS IN DOMESTIC DOGS FROM POLTAVA, UKRAINE Yevstafieva, V.1, Horb, К.1, Melnychuk, V.1 Bakhur, T.2, Feshchenko, D.3 1Department of Parasitology and Veterinary-Sanitary Examination, Institute of Veterinary Medicine Poltava State Agrarian Academy, Skovorody Str., 1/3, 36003, Poltava 2Department of Parasitology and Pharmacology, Bila Tserkva National Agrarian University Soborna Sq., 8/1, 09100, Bila Tserkva, Kyiv region 3Department of Parasitology, Veterinary-Sanitary Expertise and Zoohygiene, Polissia National University Staryy Blvd., 7, 10008, Zhytomyr, Ukraine [email protected]; [email protected] ABSTRACT were mostly parasitizing in the form of an associations with: nematoda (Toxocara canis, Trichuris vulpis, Un­ One of the most common ectoparasites on domes- cinaria stenocephala), Cestoda (Dipylidium caninum), tic carnivores are fleas from the genus Ctenocephalides. protozoa (Cystoisospora canis), and another ectoparasite This group of blood sucking insects are one of the most (Trichodectes canis). Overall, 33 types of mixed infesta- important in medical and veterinary terms, as they can tions were detected. Moreover, the number of different serve as carriers of dangerous infectious and may cause parasitic species in each dog ranged from one to seven. other invasive diseases. Research studies have estab- Fleas of the genus Ctenocephalides (in the composition lished a variety of fleas and other contagions parasitiz- of two species of parasites) were registered the most of- ing domestic dogs in Poltava, Ukraine. Certain peculi- ten (14.60 %). The infestation of dogs with other forms arities of these ectoparasitic studies, as a part of mixed of mixed infestations was 0.69—8.01 %. The most fre- infestations of dogs, have recently been determined. The quent co-members for Ct. felis were Cestoda [D. cani­ results of the studies have shown that the species compo- num (13.47 %)], for Ct. canis—Cestoda [D. caninum sition of the fleas was represented by two main species. (11.23 %)] and Nematoda [T. vulpis (8.29 %)]. The dominant species was Ct. felis, and their prevalence was 36.05 %. Another species (Ct. canis) was diagnosed Key words: cohabitants; domestic dog; fleas; mixed less often and had a prevalence of 27.94 %. It was found infestation; prevalence that in 31.18 % of the dogs, the blood-sucking insects 47 INTRODUCTION cides; because it is known that the species Ct. felis is resist- ant to the most common insecticides [8, 13]. Dog breeding is gaining importance in various sectors of the economy today. The need for the development of ser- vice, decorative, sports and special dog breeding is grow- MATERIALS AND METHODS ing, as these animals are indispensable helpers of humans. Therefore, their health is of constant concern to humanity. Animals and study design One of the most common groups of diseases among the The research was conducted during 2017—2020 in the population of domestic dogs are entomosis infestations Laboratory of Parasitology of Poltava State, Agrarian Acad- caused by fleas. Their ability to use humans as an alterna- emy and Veterinary Service “Vetexpert” located in Poltava tive host determines the importance of these parasites in (49°34' N, 34°34' W). It is located in the north-eastern part the field of human health care [6, 12, 22, 29]. of Ukraine. In general, the city’s climate is moderately con- Most species of fleas parasitize animals of a certain spe- tinental with cool winters and warm (sometimes hot) sum- cies or group of species, but can easily change their hosts. mers. The average annual temperature is 7.6 °C, the lowest Rarely, other specific non-flea parasites are registered in January (–6.6 °C), and the highest in July (20.1 °C). The among the fleas, tied only to the one or several close spe- relative humidity averages 74 %; it is the lowest in May cies of animals, which even after prolonged starvation can’t (61 %), and the highest in December (88 %). drink the blood of their unusual host [10, 21]. Therefore, A total of 3,171 domestic dogs of different breeds the establishment of the identity of these non-flea cohab- and crossbreds were investigated. They were aged from itants of fleas that parasitize domestic dogs in different cli- 1 month to 11 years when they were brought to the Veteri- matic regions will increase the effectiveness of measures to nary Service area for study. control and prevent them, as well as prevent the diseases they transmit. Parasitological study Thus, most scientists claim that domestic dogs are par- The isolation of fleas and chewing lice from the body asitized by fleas of the Ctenocephalides genus (S t i l e s, of animals was performed by combing them with a plastic C o l l i n s, 1930). Two species of fleas are particularly small-toothed special comb for 10 minutes. The collected important—Ctenocephalides felis (B o u c h e, 1835) and insects were fixed in 70 % ethyl alcohol. The identification Ctenocephalides canis (C u r t i s, 1826), which are domi- of the isolated parasitic insect species was established by nant in dogs. These species are non-specific to carnivores; microscopy according to the morphological taxonomic they can attack and feed on a variety of hosts, including hu- features [7, 17, 28]. mans. This feature of parasitic insects contributes to their The faeces were collected from dogs from which the significant stability in the environment [9, 15, 25]. At the fleas were isolated; coproscopic examinations were per- same time, there are reports of parasitism of fleas by other formed according to the Kotelnikov–Khrenov’s method species, i. e., Echidnophagia gallinacea, Pulex irritans, Xen- [16]. The identification of the species affiliation of hel- opsylla cheopis and Cediopsylla simplex on dogs [14, 27]. minthic eggs and oocysts of coccidian parasites were per- The degree of infestation of domestic dogs with Ct. felis formed using recognized identifiers [11, 23]. and Ct. canis varies and depends: on the climatic condi- Microphotography was performed using a digital cam- tions of the region, the method of animal keeping, as well era and MBS-10 binocular microscope at a magnification as preventive insecticide treatments [1, 2, 19, 20]. of 8—16 times. Thus, the study of the species composition of fleas par- asitizing on domestic dogs in certain geographical regions Statistical analysis of Ukraine, establishing the peculiarities of their course Standard indices of infestation of dogs with parasitic together with other pathogens of parasitic diseases are im- disease pathogens were calculated: portant in conducting comprehensive treatment measures, • Prevalence (Р, %)—the ratio of the number of dogs in- and control of the epizootic situations. This must take into fected with invasive disease pathogens to the number of account the sensitivity of certain species of fleas to insecti- animals studied; 48 • Intensity (I, specimens per animal)—the number of species was registered less often and the P was 23.98 % with fleas of a certain species per infected host. the I 13.63 ± 0.35 specimens per animal. The datasets were expressed as mean ± standard error It was found that in 31.18 % of the dogs, the blood-suck- of the mean (SE). Statistical processing of the experimental ing insects mostly parasitize in the form of an associations results was carried out using Microsoft Excel software. with the causative agents of nematodes, cestodes, protozo- ans and entomotic infestations. Less commonly diagnosed was the mono-infestation (14.79 %), where the infestation RESULTS of dogs by Ct. felis only was 9.71 %, and Ct. canis—5.07 %. The infestation of dogs simultaneously by two species of Our studies have shown that the average P of ecto- fleas was 3.50 % (Table 1). parasites Ctenocephalides spp. on domestic dogs at the A total of 33 types of mixed infestations were identi- territory of Poltava, Ukraine was 49.48 % with an average fied, where the cohabitants of the flea Ctenocephalides I 19.30 ± 0.31 specimens per animal. It was found that the genus were: cestodes of the species Dipylidium caninum fleas of the genus Ctenocephalides was represented by two (L i n n a e u s, 1758); nematodes of the species Toxocara species—Ctenocephalides felis (B o u c h e, 1835) (Fig. 1) canis (W e r n e r, 1782), Trichuris vulpis (F r ö l i c h, and Ctenocephalides canis (C u r t i s, 1826) (Fig. 2). The 1789), and Uncinaria stenocephala (R a i l l i e t, 1884); dominant species was Ct. felis, where the P reached 36.05 % coccidia of the species Cystoisospora canis (Nemeséri, with the I 15.87 ± 0.34 specimens per animal. The Ct. canis 1959); and chewing lice of the species Trichodectes canis a b Fig. 1. Ctenocephalides felis fleas of Ctenocephalides genus: а—♀; b—♂ 1— sloping forehead; 2—long teeth of oral ctenidium a b Fig. 2. Ctenocephalides canis fleas of Ctenocephalides genus: а—♀; b—♂ 3—steep forehead; 4—short teeth of oral ctenidium. 49 Table 1. Indicators of domestic Table 2. The most common two-members mixed infestations dog flea infestation of Ctenocephalides genus in domestic dogs included Ctenocephalides spp. as a part of mono- and mixed infestations Species of mixed Number of Prevalence % of mixed % of infestations’ infected [%] infestations Number Prevalence Infestations’ infected co-members animals (n = 3,171) (n = 989) of infected % types animals animals (n = 3,171) (n = 1,569) Ctenocephalides canis Nematoda Ct. felis 308 9.71 19.63 35 1.10 3.54 (T. vulpis) Ct. canis 161 5.07 10.26 Cestoda 30 0.95 3.03 Ct.